The use of self-retracting lifelines and energy absorbers is well-known in the fall protection industry. Recently, there has been a desire to combine an energy absorption device to the user side of the SRL's in order to protect the user in the event of a fall. While several existing energy absorber devices are known and suitable for such use, there is always room for improvement. For example, existing energy absorber devices for use with SRL's have proven to be relatively large, heavy and bulky, and can inhibit movement and create a nuisance to the user of the SRL/energy absorber device combination.
Often, these energy absorber devices are in the form of a length of webbing that have been folded to overlap and which absorbs energy as it unfolds while breaking connections between adjacent layers of the webbing. Such absorber devices have folds that are perpendicular to the length of the webbing which shortens the original length but still results in a lengthening of the overall SRL/energy absorber combination.